Stories from our guests: Elder

“I usually sleep in a park or at a bus station. I sit upright so that no one bothers me. Outside there is no safety, but I just close my eyes and hope for the best. Sometimes my stuff gets stolen. You’re trying to get ahead and then everything is just ripped out from under you. You hit brick walls. Whenever I have a couple of extra dollars, I buy a bunch of bananas and give them to my friends living in the park with me.”

12:00 pm

“I have a real routine. When I open my eyes in the morning, I jump on the Muni and go to 16th and Mission. The center there has a place to do laundry and to take a shower, but there’s always a huge line of people. When I’m there, I can get a cup of coffee and charge my phone. I need my phone to find out about jobs. I’m working on my resume.”

5:00 pm

“I go to Planet Fitness on Sansome. It’s 10 bucks a month but I’m able to can stay clean that way. Sometimes I use the bathrooms at the library or the mall, but in an emergency, I just pee into a bottle and throw it into a dumpster. I feel pretty well taken care of by the city but I think that people who are burned out need some inspiration to show them that someone cares.”